


THE LAND OF SAND AND ZEPHYR

by Broba



Category: Homestuck
Genre: M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2012-02-20
Updated: 2012-02-20
Packaged: 2017-10-31 12:29:31
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 3
Words: 4,340
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/344078
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Broba/pseuds/Broba
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>One of my first fills on the kinkmeme, and the first one I was satisfied with. Tavros spent a lof of his game-time on side quests, ignored mostly by the others. On one occasion, he encountered a strange alien who seemed to know all about him.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chapter 1

Crisp bright sunlight without any apparent source, white white sands mixed with grey dusty granules, obscure architecture half-buried and wind-blasted, encrusted with weird and awful runic clues to puzzles within. Also, there were zephyrs. Hence the name;

  


**THE LAND OF SAND AND ZEPHYR**

 

  
The sands had been whisked and gusted about by powerful rocket engines, but there was only silence to greet the dawn, interrupted with the occasional soft moan. Tavros managed to sit himself up, but it was about all that he could do. Some short distance away the wreckage of his rocket chair still smouldered where it had been burning throughout the night. In fact, the fire was probably all that had kept him from freezing while he was unconscious. Now, the sun was rising- or at least in this place lacking a true sun the light was increasing, and Tavros was nervous- the light was distinctly uncomfortable already and it did no more then smudge the skies grey.  
  
He was able to shuffle and crawl backwards on his rear a little way, but the effort was exhausting to him and as soon as he had rolled into the lee of a rising dune he collapsed in the purpling shadows. Rest was not forthcoming however, as the light advanced ever further and he began to feel it prickling on his skin. It was not the same sun, or the same light, as Alternia but still it hurt where it found bare skin.  
  
As his strength ebbed Tavros began to weep softly, and openly, murky mustardy tears that disappeared instantly into the sand. Good, let them vanish, and him with them. Let the sands take him and that be the end of it.  
  
He heard the shuffle of impfeet on the sands, the pointy little bastards as yellow as noon sands were coming for him. He had communed with them in the past, he had made them into his friends, for all the good it did him now- they were coming to feed. He squinted into the heat-haze and saw several sandy masses picked out by their shadows against the dunes, running for him. There was no energy left, he had no thoughts left. He let his head fall to the sands and succumbed to the numbing blanket of hopelessness.  
  
The dune imps would cut him up, and fight over the pieces. He would feel their wicked little claw-knives soon, they were without mercy or language. Tavros stared upwards, on his back. The dune that he nestled against offered precious little protection now. He was wallowing in a shrinking pool of shadow, and then, someone else was there. Craning his neck and looking up and back, Tavros could see someone stood up at the top of the dune, the limb of the dune was burning gold with sunlight now, and the figure was picked out in a vivid halo of sand. On moment nothing, and then he was there. He called out to the advancing line of imps, effortlessly confident for some reason.  
  
"Where you guys live?"  
  
The imps, as one, paused and looked up.  
  
"Where your mama's live?"  
  
The figure raised one arm, longer and more slender then a troll's arm. He was holding something short, and metallic. It blazed uncompromisingly in the sun as he continued to harangue the silent imps.  
  
"Because... this is MY house."  
  
He leaped into the air, he must have been thirty or more feet from the nearest imps, and it was not a leap that would carry him far. And yet, Tavros saw that distance covered in less then an instant, and suddenly the imps were being dismembered. The fighter blurred and shifted like water on a hot stone, they could not touch him. He thrust and chopped with something similar to a sword, yet far too short for  the size of its hilt. Tavros realised with a start that it was a broken sword, the blade should have been fully twice as long. It was done quickly and without rancour, but neither with any possibility that an imp would be left alive after this moment in time. Tavros barely had time to pull himself up to his elbows before he was confronted by this apparition. His mouth hung open in shock.  
  
It looked roughly male, although the proportions were not quite right for a troll. It- he- was swaddled in tightly wound linens that made him look a little like a mummy, with a band wound around his face and neck. A wild tuft of blonde hair- nothing like Tavros had ever seen before- and his eyes were hidden behind some kind of polarizing shade structure which he wore on the bridge of his nose. The fighter held out his blade, pointing directly at Tavros, weaving little circles in the air.  
  
"One day, in a long, long time, you're going to tell your friends about this orgasm of violence I just  rudenessed out over there. And when you do," he leaned over slightly, his face an impassive mask beneath the intimidatingly dark polarizing shade structure, "tell 'em I was fucking awesome, right?"  
  
Dave turned and began to walk off. This was not strictly necessary, he could just leave any time he wanted, but there was the look of the thing to think about. He counted softly under his breath.  
  
"Wait!" Called Tavros weakly. Dave grinned privately to himself and stopped counting. He half-turned, staring blankly.  
"What?"  
"Who are you?"  
"Can't tell you dude, wish I could."  
"W-why not?"  
Dave paused, and seesawed one hand in the air, miming a delicate balance. "Timey-wimey."  
"B-but you can't just l-leave me!" He stuttered, finding his breath at last and with it his nerves.  
"Sure I can, you'll be fine. Rocket on out of here, pchooooo."  
"How did you- but I can't! My rocket it's-" he waved vaguely in the direction of the smouldering heap. Dave regarded it coolly, as though the thought that it wouldn't just work had not occurred to him in the least.  
  
He turned on his heel and strode back to Tavros, squatting down next to him.  
  
"Alright little horn-dogg, I can hang out a little while. But hey, just saying, when you tell the story of what happened today, might want to add a few more details. Word to the wise dude."  
  
Timey-wimey indeed. Dave had turned up in order to satisfy what had sounded like a memory that he had turned up. If he hadn't, then he wouldn't have ever heard about how he had, and that would have led to all sorts of problems. He hadn't realised it would be any kind of extended engagement.  
  
"Damn dude, I just realised."  
"Wh-at?"  
"I only packed the one pair of shades. Harsh."

 

 


	2. Chapter 2

Tavros sat up awkwardly. His useless legs flopped out in front of him. The fighter walked about a short distance away, collecting grist from the felled imps because hey, waste not want not. In truth, Dave had wanted a little time to just think alone. He apparently couldn't just walk off because Tavros was obviously helpless. On the other hand the more he interfered the more he risked spinning off into a doomed timeline or even worse- warping the existing one. Making up his mind, he walked back to where Tavros waited and sheepishly watched.  
  
"Alright so..." He said to the recumbent troll.  
"Yes?"  
"Well, what do you need? I can't hang around all day, man. I got some crunchy beats just lined up waiting for my delicate fingerings, and if I don't oil my turntables daily they get all squealsome."  
  
Tavros understood exactly none of that, but this alien figure was clearly far beyond his meagre understanding and so he did not question.  
  
"I need to get out of the sun, I guess. And, uh, something to drink? I'm really thirsty."  
"Fine. So where's water?"  
"You don't know!?"  
"Why the hell would I know? It's my first time out here!"  
  
Tavros mouthed wordlessly, he didn't understand this person at all. He appeared out of nowhere, he had apparently popped into existence purely to help him but now seemed reluctant to do so. Tavros was starting to seriously wonder if this apparition, this djinn, was nothing more then a manifestation of his own self doubt. He needed to know more about his benefactor.  
  
"What should I cuh-call you?"  
"Hey man, I told you, secret stuff. I'd tell you but the irony is I'd have to kill you."  
"I have to call you something! I'm T-"  
"Tavros, I know. I know all about you, man."  
  
Before Tavros could ask any of the obvious and difficult question Dave held up a hand, he had to cut this shit right off- the more Tavros knew the worse it would be. A name... He scanned the heavens. No inspiration there. He looked around the horizon. An empty sea of nothingness. Glancing down, he noticed a tiny black beetle, its glittering carapace only just visible as the creature industriously worked to burrow under Tavros' knee. Beetles. Beatles?  
  
"Call me," he stood up, perfect timing, the light caught his hair just so, "John-Paul G. Ringo."  
"Uhm, okay... John."  
  
The irony was delicious, he would savour it in years to come while sipping tiramisu from a long spoon, as Chinese waitresses showered him in sherbet. That was how delicious. All the delicious.  
  
Tavros squirmed uncomfortably. The light was really starting to hurt him now.  
  
"I have to get out of here John, I'm not guh. Guh. Guh-going to do too good under the sun here."  
  
Dave seemed to flicker in the haze. Like a film that skipped, he was there, and then suddenly his position was slightly different. He had done something, though Tavros had no idea what.  
  
"There's a bunch of broken up rocks and shit maybe half a mile that way, looks like it might have been a building once, it'll make a decent shelter."  
"That's where I was heading! It's my quest!" Tavros puffed up a little. Despite all the hardships, despite losing his rocket chair, he had actually gotten pretty damn close to it all on his own.  
"Quest?"  
"Yes, it's the g-game, um, you have to sort of p-play though it and achieve small victory conditions adjacent to the overall purpose," he wasn't putting it well and he knew it, Dave thought he looked more stressed by the moment.  
"You mean... you're on a side quest."  
"S'pose you could call it that? Sounds a bit fancy to muh, muh, me."  
  
Dave made a faintly derisive snort, a noise calculated and well rehearsed, that had put scores of teenage humans in their place when confronted with the coolkid. Tavros was not like that though, and immediately stared down between his dead knees, his cheeks blushing bruise-yellow. Dave realised he had gone to far but it was too late to apologise, even if that was something Dave was generally inclined to do. Which it wasn't. So he didn't.  
  
Instead he reached down and ruffled Tavros' mane of hair, "Come on," he said, "We got a bit of a walk ahead."  
"Well what am I supposed to do?" Tavros practically screamed it. His fingers clawed at the sand and he belted little craters out with his fists, "I cuh! I cuh! I can't! Even!"  
  
Dave took hold of his grey hands, careful around the claws and looked at him. "Hey. Tavros."  
"What!"  
"These," he gently pressed Tavros' palms down over his paralysed limbs, "aren't going to hold you back forever, man."  
  
Tavros just replied with a strangled cry down in his throat, he had no answer to that, and it wasn't a comfort that was for Dave to give. It was the wrong time, he now realised, and he couldn't just change who Tavros was. Even if he spilled out every detail of what was to come, in all its gory splendour, it wouldn't ultimately change the poor bent over and shaking grey troll before him in the sand. It just wasn't time yet. Dave firmed his resolve at that. At least if he was going to give Tavros something to chatter about later, he'd make it something good.  
  
"Come on, we're moving. You're right, the quest I mean, it's just a little way further and you're nearly there. I'll help you out, man."  
  
Tavros looked at him with an openly doubtful expression. Dave just reached down and awkwardly embraced him, looping his arms around and heaving. Tavros yelled and squirmed.  
  
"No, no no not like that!"  
"What? I'm gonna carry you, man. This is all going to happen right now."  
"Ah! I mean, it hur, ah, it hur, huh,"  
"It hurts?"  
  
Tavros nodded mutely. Dave sighed and tried again, slower this time.  
  
"Alright show me how I should be doing this, it's new to me, the whole lifting of dudes."  
"Juh-John forget it, you cuh, couldn't carry me all the way anyways,"  
"You leave me to worry about that, all I got to do is get you lifted up a little, show me how!"  
  
Tavros guided him, it was awkward and difficult, but he showed "John" how to support his weight better. Dave was able to squirm an arm under him, and when Tavros looped an arm around Dave's neck he definitely shifted a little.  
  
"Okay now," Dave gasped under the weight, "you got to close your eyes."  
"Wh, why?"  
"Trust me on this, it's going to get weird. I can do this, with a little help."  
"From who?"  
"From my friends, man. From my friends."  
  
Tavros closed his eyes and, as soon as he did, felt something very strange. Hands over his body, pair after pair of hands, touching him and lifting, working together, each palm would bear a little of his weight for a moment or two and then withdraw to be replaced by another. All the time, he felt Dave's neck and shoulders, this stranger was lithe and slender yet he lifted the troll with ease somehow. Tavros kept his eyes closed, he wasn't sure he wanted to know what was happening, but he knew somehow that he was being kept safe. He hadn't felt like that in a very long time, nor did he ever expect to feel it again, and so he allowed himself to be comforted and borne aloft. There was no sun now as some kind of a sheet had been wrapped around him. He felt like a swaddled grubling but he had not the energy or will to object to it.  
  
He knew that they would arrive at their destination, and that he would get there in perfect safety, and he was right.


	3. Chapter 3

The structure was quite obvious side quest material, a ruined temple of some sort from times long past, it probably contained some kind of relic or treasure item beyond a diabolical maze filled with traps and peril. Dave hated the ones like that, which is why he rarely had the patience for side quests. The building had almost collapsed, but was stable. Massive columns and sections of masonry leaned inwards and rested together, giving the appearance of nothing so much as an enormous stone teepee tent made of random statuary. Inside was cool and, more importantly, dark. A natural spring filled a shallow stone basin that would once have formed an impressive antechamber to the temple proper, and he laid Tavros down there carefully. Tavros had to guide him even in doing that, his spine was delicate and weak at the base where he had been injured badly in the past, and Dave had to avoid putting pressure there as Tavros wouldn't feel anything was wrong. He was prone to herniated discs, or the troll equivalent, as a result.  
  
"Alright little dude, you can open your eyes now."  
"Buh.. how did you do that? It's just you, I mean you must have cah, carried me for miles!"  
"A mile and change, it's no big. But hey I have to leave you now for a while."  
"No John don't!"  
"It's very important that I do, and it'll only be for a few hours I think. I got to do this man, but I'll be back. And dudes called John never lie." He suppressed a knowing snicker.  
"Alright I think I'll be okay here tuh, till you get back."  
"Just lay down some ill rhymes for me while I'm gone or something."  
"Ill ruh-ryhmes?"  
"Yeah you can do it man. I mean, not very well and your rhymes are generally pretty healthy and not in need of immediate medical attention, but take your mind off it you know? Get with me on this one. I'll be back!"  
  
Dave walked around a corner and vanished. He strode off into the desert and the past, in order to help himself. He would have to spend some time doing this, there had been a whole team of Daves at work supporting Tavros and, fair play to the kid, he had done what he had been told and not peeked. It was a pain in the ass, but he now had to go through each and every one of those loops, making that trudging walk over and over again. You call the tune, you better damn well pay that piper.  
  
He found himself struggling, and took his turn helping out among an assortment of Daves from his own relative future. Tavros was curled up like a baby, as much as he was able to be without the use of legs. Dave nodded to Dave and Dave, and also Dave, and took a hold under one thigh, helping to lift. It was easy then with all of them working together. One of the Daves was different, they could all tell, practically smell it on him. He was from hours in the future, maybe as much as a day, and his clothing was soaking wet. When he arrived he held Tavros tenderly, supporting his back, and ran a hand through his hair for just a moment. The other Daves looked at him but they couldn't say anything or Tavros would hear, and he knew it. Asshole just flashed them a grin and vanished after a time.  
  
By the time Dave had finished with all the time looping, he had used up hours of his time and when he returned to the temple tired out. He slouched in as the light was dimming and the area was becoming more comfortably cool. Tavros was not where he had been left, and Dave almost panicked for a second- almost, but most definitely not- then he heard splashing. Around the shallow basin he found Tavros, he must have spent a long time crawling on his belly to get there. The troll was on his back and had been casually dipping a hand into the water and dripping it over himself. Dave watched for a moment before he understood- Tavros couldn't risk just rolling into the water, as much as he wanted to, in case he couldn't get himself out again.  
  
"Hi little dude, I'm back."  
"Where did you guh, g-go? I thought for sure you were gone for guh," he paused and waved vaguely.  
"Gone for good? No I just had to go do something, ain't nothing but a thing." Dave looked down and out across the water, "what are you doing?"  
"I'm covered in that ashy sand, it's uh, everywhere and there's small chitinous biting animals too."  
"Bugs?"  
"I guess? I checked and they uh, they bit me up g-good."  
  
Whatever Tavros hoped to achieve, he was touchingly naive to think it would work that way.  
  
"Well easy, I'll help, we'll just dip you in and out."  
"Uhm,"  
  
Tavros looked distinctly uncomfortable at the idea of the dipping. Dave pictured it for a moment and looked down at his own linen wrappings, also coated in sand and sweat. The sand turned into a coarse mushy mud with the slightest moisture, it would not be comfortable to dry off after a bath fully clothed in this environment. He had a moment of understanding again.  
  
"You gonna have to strip off, dude. I'll shake the bugs and shit out of your threads, it's fine."  
"Ah! Uh n-no I cuh, couldn't!"  
"Look, you must have figured out I'm not a troll by now, it's totally cool man. It's like, I'm so far from being caring about this stuff, just think of me like a weirdly awesome statue. I got the whole stony non-judgemental gaze thing. Look at me, not judging and shit."  
  
That seemed to mollify Tavros, he pulled at the hem of his shirt fruitlessly, gasping softly with effort as he squirmed. Dave moved behind him and knelt down, lifting carefully under his shoulder blades, and cradled Tavros into a sitting position. Working together they stripped his shirt off, sand poured our of the back of it where it had formed a solid runnel of grit down Tavros' spine.  
  
"Alright press down on the ground and lift your butt up," Dave ordered, and opened Tavros' pants. Working together made it an easy enough operation. Dave resisted the temptation to an extent but couldn't help but wee as the underpants came off and, yes, their physiology was if not identical then roughly analogous. Tavros had been bitten all to hell though, he had brushed bugs off himself where he noticed them, but lacking feeling in legs they had just gone to town, Dave saw blood in places and bit his lip. Poor little bastard, he he hadn't turned up there was no telling what state he'd have ended up in. He looked to the side and without hesitation stood up and began stripping. He had deliberately worn clothing that wouldn't reveal any clues, but he left his head and face wrapped up. He soaked their clothes and left them on the edge to dry off. Then he stepped into the water without a word and pushed an arm under Tavros' knees and another around his back.  
  
"Hold on," he leaned backwards and gently took Tavros into the water. It was wonderfully cool compared to the blistering head of the day and as soon as Tavros was in he was buoyant enough that Dave could cradle him easily in his arms. With those massive horns Dave estimated that he would have very real problems floating unaided. Dave leaned back, supporting more of Tavros' weight on his chest, and when Tavros instinctively curled an arm around his neck to hold on he was able to stroke his hands over the troll's grey skin, brushing away the grime and insect life. He felt a rising sense of anger while he was doing this. From what Tavros had- or more acurately would- reveal about troll relations the others had pretty much been content to leave him to his own devices on these little quests, and he could easily have been killed! No one seemed to care. Or maybe trolls were not quite like that, it was more that they accepted it as fate or some shit. Kismet. The strong fight their way to the top and the rest just get whatever they can cling to. At that moment Tavros was clinging to Dave.  
  
Keep things professional. Or try. "Hey Tavros,"  
"Mm?"  
"Help me out here man, I don't know how your guys work, am I doing this right?"  
"Yes John this is, uh, correct in, uh, all the ways."  
"You're comfortable,"  
"I am. Your skin is really, uh, soft? And so pale."  
"Yeah I'm one angelic motherfucker right over here."  
  
Tavros pressed his face against Dave's chest and sighed again. It was a ragged, forced sigh and Dave recognised the quality of it. Tavros was trying not to start crying. There was another of those I-am-not-going-to-do-this sighs.  
  
"It's okay man,"  
"Mnn."  
"Bathing motherfuckers is, like, my calling in life. I love this shit. You're all doing me a favour right now you know."  
  
Tavros shook his head against Dave's chest, but there was also the slightest hint of a laugh.  
  
"Look Tavros, I am going to have to go soon."  
"Oh, like before?"  
"Not like before. I'm only a cameo appearance in your film dude, I'm Christopher Walken and I done given you your watch, so it's time for me slope off and leave everyone wondering how something so awesome just happened."  
"I duh, don't think I understand."  
"See that dark, forbidding passage in that wall there?"  
"Uh, it doesn't look good."  
"Hey it's your quest, brother, don't be second guessing. Past there is a bunch of imps, but there's also womanticores and wronglems you can commune with, you totally nail this one. You're going to wind up being carried out of here aloft by your minions like all one victorious motherfucker."  
"I uh, dunno if I can believe that John,"  
"Well I have it on very good authority that's what's coming. Trust me?"  
"I guh, guess I do John."  
"Good. I'm not even being ironic about it either. Oh! Yeah before I forget, remember to tell people how ironic I was. I mean if later on you feel a need to relate this little tale."  
  
Dave helped Tavros out, and they crouched together, naked and shivering, while they dried off. Dave made sure Tavros was comfortable and helped him dress in clean clothing. His own linens were sopping wet still, but it didn't bother him because he knew he had a quick detour to make, somewhere very hot.  
  
"I'll see you around man,"  
"Puh, promise?"  
"Oh yes, you can count on it." Dave highfived Tavros, a little awkwardly from a sitting position, and stood up to go, "quest, dude. Get right on the motherfucker."  
"Guh, got it!"  
  
Dave turned a corner, and vanished.  
  
Hours previously he took a turn helping to carry Tavros while his clothing dried off. Dave, Dave and Dave looked at him like he was being an asshole when he reached in and stroked a hand through Tavros' mane of hair, but he didn't care. Not caring is what being a coolkid is all about.


End file.
